Frank - B

Rated R, 95 minutes

Weird, wonderful & oddly affecting "Frank"

Michael Fassbender as Frank

"It's not too weird is it?" asks the title character to another character in the film, who wears a large papier-mâché head in his everyday life. Why yes, it is weird, very weird at times but also delightfully oddball and charming, with some decent tunes too. The movie follows young wannabe musician, Jon (Domhnall Gleeson), who finds himself out of his depth when he joins an avant-garde pop band led by the mysterious and enigmatic Frank (recent Oscar-nominee Michael Fassbender), a musical genius who hides himself inside a large fake head, and his terrifying bandmate Clara (Maggie Gyllenhaal). Directed by acclaimed Lenny Abrahamson, who's directed other offbeat films such as "Garage" and "Adam & Paul," "Frank" is one of unconventional dramedies that seems to come out of nowhere and unexpectedly surprise you by how accustomed you become to having Fassbender wearing a large head throughout the film. He gives an affecting performance too, and strangely he's the most normal in the film, with Gleeson's geek and Gyllenhaal's aggressive ball-buster bandmate more unusual than Frank himself. Sure, there are some darkly funny moments to be had, and it borders on the depressive at times, and while it's certainly unconventional, it's also touching and often very compelling. If you enjoy slightly (well, more than slightly), strange comedic films such as this, then you'll get a kick of it, and it's far more memorable and normal than some of the mainstream dreck out there.

Wes's Grade: B